Our LG front-loading washer tried to self-destruct this weekend. A hellacious, banging din from the garage brought my wife running to shut it off before it blew though a wall like the Kool-Aid man.
I got home a few minutes later (from buying project materials) to learn that my weekend plans and possibly a good chunk of my wallet were irrevocably and completely shot. It appeared that the front rubber boot, sealing the door, had slipped and gotten itself all twisted up.
Oh,... that just ain't right.
I'm not too experienced in appliance repair, but I am experienced in taking a day off work and waiting for a repair guy to show up (if he shows up) and estimate just how much cash we're going to fork over, only to have the estimate shattered, because "…it was worse than expected".
Yeah, I know all about that nonsense.
I'm also experienced in pursuing the nuclear option: an emergency replacement appliance purchase, especially following a deposit of a tax return into the savings account. Dang it.
In this case, I'm going for it.
I'm a "DIY Guy" right? What's would the the be risk anyway? If I failed, then I would move to other, more costly, wallet-brutalizing options.
Challenge accepted!
-Barney Stinson
I started by staring at it with cool, steely-eyed intensity. I pushed, wiggled, prodded, and poked the rubber boot. No luck.
Close up, it didn't even seem twisted. It was just all-fouled-up somehow. I couldn't get it right by hand. Naturally, I engaged in some YouTube-ery and found this simply outstanding video by RepairClinic.com about how to open the washer properly:
I went on a search mission to find the spring expansion tool they mentioned. I wasted a couple hours and had no luck, at Ace Hardware, Home Depot, Lowes, an Auto Parts store, and Harbor Freight, although I did visit the Bad Dogs hot dog guy at Home Depot again. I ended up using a pair of long handled needle nose pliers to expand the boot retaining ring's spring. It was and easy-off operation, but a not-so-easy maneuver later to put it back on.
Now I know Amazon has ‘em:
Unhinged
I ended up following Repair Clinic's instructions to break the machine down. It was unbelievably simple, following their directions. Anyone fairly-handy with hand tools can do it. If I have time to order for delivery next time, I'll definitely send business their way in the future. The problem is, everyone's laundry was done, except mine and my wife's unmentionables. We needed this rascal fixed this weekend.
I found that the entire drum assembly had come disconnected from the springs that suspend it. The whole thing had crashed down inside the box. It had pulled some of the internal components out of place, scuffed up some of the plastic assembly, and dented the case from the inside. No wonder it made so much noise, it was leaping around loose in there, like a battering ram. It was a wreck, but nothing looked permanently broken to my untrained eye.
I enlisted Jack to help get the hanging spring back in place while I man-handled the awkward drum up into position, dragging my forearms against the razor-sharp sheet-metal edges of the case. With my tender eared audience, I managed to keep my more colorful language to my self and simply kept with a simple, "huuuuuuurrrrrgggg,... pffffffffttttttttttttt,,,guuuuuuuuuhhhhhhhnttt..." through grit teeth.
The reinforcements were suited up and ready to help.
We got it suspended from the springs again and thought we had it licked. I popped all the dislodged pieces back to their respective spots. No serious damage noted, until I looked at the bottom of the unit. There were three shock-absorber things that appear to keep the whole drum in place. One was broken apart, dented, and squashed out of round. Destroyed.
Nuts! At 3:50 pm, I sprinted into the house to look up an appliance parts store. I found one about a half hour away and was told they had the part, but they were closing.
image: Major Appliance Parts and Service. An old-school supply house.
They opened at 9am (Sunday morning!!!) and I was first to sprint through the door of Major Appliance Parts and Service in Phoenix. The guy had actually left a piston at the counter as promised, for $44.95. Yee-Ouch! Despite the financial pain, I asked for a couple more. Since I had the whole thing open with the dryer lifted off the top, I might as well replace all of them. The friendly counter guy dug around forever, but he never gave up.
This place had a bazillion parts. Some probably dated back to the creation of the word “appliance". I figured that if I needed a left rear, heating element for a 1962 Hotpoint range top in avocado green, they'd have it. The counter guy came back smiling and successful. He even knocked $30 off the total price, for buying three.
I'll certainly be going back in the future,... hopefully not today though.
Battered vs. Brand New
I'm glad I bought all three. It looks like the new ones are much beefier than the originals. I had to remove some way too-small, steel bushings from the tips and replace them from the old ones, but it was a snap. Following info from Repair Clinic, I had all three replaced in minutes. The washer went back together easy and ran through a rinse and spin cycle without leaking(!!!)
Honestly, this was a really easy repair, I'm confident most DIY handy folks can handle it. I don't know what a repair guy would have charged, but a new washer of this sort goes for $700 - $900. I spent $ 114.61 and a few hours of my weekend.
The worst thing…
The hardest part of the repair was going from this:
...to this:
That is one heavy, awkward death box to lob up on top. If I'm writing about a hernia or stained back in the next few weeks, you know where it started.
So much for weekend plans.
